Players rating – Arsenal vs Man City – fabulous Ozil, solid Koscielny and horrible Aguero
Arsenal won the match 2-1, and is now 2nd in the league while Manchester City who could have moved up in the table, couldn’t find the crucial win. The individual analysis provides more insight on the performances of each team.
Arsenal:
Peter Cech – 8
Kept goals at bay, commanded the box with great composure and kept defence organised. Except for Yaya Toure’s surprise goal, Cech did well, but unfortunate for him, couldn’t attain a clean sheet to set the record of most clean sheets in Premier League to his name.
Hector Bellerin – 7
Made good use of his pace, recovered from an early error and managed to keep Raheem Sterling quiet in the second half.
Laurent Koscielny – 9
A solid performance overall, crucial clearance denying Jesus Navas a goal scoring opportunity. Also contributed to Walcott’s opening goal. One of the best performances from the Arsenal squad.
Per Mertesacker – 7
His partnership and coordination with Koscielny is the main reason for Arsenal’s defensive improvement. Ever present and good anticipation of opponents’ moves.
Nacho Monreal – 7
Did his job as a left-back without being prominent, made key forward runs and took part in counter-attacks. Also kept Kevin De Bruyne at bay.
Mathieu Flamini – 8
Arsenal has never lost a game at Emirates with Flamini. The defensive midfielder held his ground and handled both offense and defence effectively.
Aaron Ramsey – 6
Useful moving forward but often found reluctant to pass the ball for a better opportunity and struggled to finish and attain a goal. Tried too hard at times.
Mesut Ozil – 9
Yet another phenomenal performance from the German international. Both Arsenal goals were his assists. He now has 15 assists in 16 games, deservingly received man of the match.
Theo Walcott – 8
Opened the scoring for Arsenal with an amazing curling shot that went past Joe Hart and into the goal. Usually outruns defenders through his pace but his goal was a display top shooting skills.
Olivier Giroud – 7
Continued to play in his improved form and scored with his only chance of the game. Although there is still room for improvement.
Joel Campbell – 6
The striker is slowly making his place in the team, although has a long way to go in order to become top-quality striker. Missed several chances in the game but consistently tried to find an opening for a goal.
Substitutes
Kieran Gibbs (for Joel Campbell, 70th min) – 6/10
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (for Ozil, 76th min) – 6/10
Calum Chambers (for Walcott, 88th min) – 6/10
Manchester City:
Joe Hart – 6
Didn’t stand a chance against both the goals, but was good enough to stop Joel Campbell from scoring a third.
Bacary Sagna – 5
Former Arsenal defender found it difficult to control his former team-mate Theo Walcott, whose pace was too much for him.
Nicolas Otamendi – 5
Booked for a challenge on Giroud, looked shaky, and lacked composure, especially after Arsenal scored their opening goal.
Eliaquim Mangala – 4
Probably the worst performance on the field, Mangala gave possession away, which also led to Arsenal’s second goal.
Aleksander Kolarov – 6
Comparatively a better performance from that of his team-mates, a solid presence in defence.
Fernandinho – 5
Lost his way as the game progressed, couldn’t hold Ozil off, who was too good for him.
Yaya Toure – 6
Mostly absent throughout the game except his 82nd moment of magic which produced a consolation goal for City.
Kevin De Bruyne – 7
Missed a golden goal scoring opportunity for City in the first-half, but overall probably the only threat to Arsenal during the match.
David Silva – 4
Flamini kept him mostly quiet and didn’t provide him enough space to create chances for City.
Fabian Delph – 5
Made little impact on the game and was replaced as half-time substitution with Sterling.
Sergio Aguero – 4
Failed to make an impact in the match after missing in action for the past four games.
Substitutes
Raheem Sterling (for Delph in 45th min) – 6/10
Wilfried Bony (for Aguero in 63rd min) – 6/10
Jesus Navas (for Silva 73rd min) – 7/10